Prince Harry and Meghan Markle are heading to Colombia after receiving an official invitation from the country's vice president to raise the country's profile as a "beacon of culture and innovation," it has been announced. However, the move has raised eyebrows because of the prince's recent concerns over security.
The trip announcement comes just days after the broadcast of a new interview given by Harry, in which he said he will not take Meghan Markle to Britain over fears of acid and knife attacks after the government downgraded his state funded security.
Currently, the U.S. and U.K. governments have issued travel advisories to citizens encouraging only essential travel to certain high-risk areas of Colombia.
The U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Consular Affairs website says that "Violent crime, such as homicide, assault, and armed robbery, is widespread," in the country and that "organized criminal activities, such as extortion, robbery, and kidnapping, are common in some areas."
Despite this, concerns over Harry and Meghan's decision to accept Colombian Vice President Francia Márquez's invitation to visit the country may be unfounded as they are not the first members of the British Royal Family to do so.
As recently as November 2023, the U.K. government sent Prince Harry's aunt, senior working royal Sophie the Duchess of Edinburgh, on a three-day official tour of the country where she was received by the vice president.
Sophie, who is married to King Charles III's youngest brother, Prince Edward, visited Bogotá and Cali in support of the United Nations' Women, Peace and Security Agenda. She attended engagements centered around survivors of sexual violence and the rights of women and girls.
Both Bogotá and Cali are areas included in Harry and Meghan's program, in addition to the historic city of Cartagena.
In 2014, King Charles III and Queen Camilla paid an official visit to Colombia, when they were still Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall.
As part of a larger tour of Latin America, which included a stay in Mexico, the royal couple's Colombia trip also included engagements in Bogotá and Cartagena.
Though Harry and Meghan haven't issued an official statement about their trip, Vice President Márquez said she is "pleased" that they have accepted her invitation.
"As the Vice President of Colombia and Minister of Equality and Equity, I am pleased to announce that Prince Harry and Meghan, The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, have kindly accepted my invitation to visit our beautiful country," Márquez said in a news release on Thursday.
"During their trip, The Duke and Duchess will join me in visiting Bogotá, as well as the Caribbean and Pacific regions of Cartagena and Cali. In these vibrant locations, they will have the exceptional opportunity to engage with leaders, youth, and women who embody the aspirations and voices of Colombians committed to progress. In addition to these meaningful interactions, The Duke and Duchess will experience the rich heritage of Colombia."
The couple's trip will precede the Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children, which is being held in the country in November. This is an area that both Harry and Meghan have focused the work of their Archewell charitable foundation on, speaking out about the importance of online safety, particularly in relation to young people.
The Colombia visit follows another overseas trip for the couple, as they spent three days in Nigeria in May at the invitation of the country's chief of defense staff to attend events connected with the Invictus Games.
Newsweek approached representatives of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle via email for comment.
James Crawford-Smith is Newsweek's royal reporter, based in London. You can find him on X (formerly Twitter) at @jrcrawfordsmith and read his stories on Newsweek's The Royals Facebook page.
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